THE PURPOSE OF THE GOSPEL
THE PURPOSE OF THE GOSPEL
If the gospel is not the means God uses in regeneration, what is the purpose of the Gospel? I offer for the reader’s consideration the following answer.
1. The Gospel Delivers the Believer from the Practice of Sin.
Romans 1:16calls the gospel "the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth." It is the power of God. God uses it to transform the thinking and the behavior of His people. {Romans 12:2} The Holy Spirit applies it as a means of spiritual growth into Christ’s likeness: "But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into Him in all things, who is the Head, even Christ." {Ephesians 4:15} In what specific terms does the gospel deliver the believer?Acts 26:18suggests at least five ways. First, it delivers them from ignorance to understanding- "To open their eyes and to turn them from darkness to light." {Romans 1:18} (a) Secondly, it delivers them from Satan’s power, that is, from his strangle-hold upon their lives "and from the power of Satan unto God." {Romans 1:18} (b) The individual who comes to gospel understanding has a resource in the truth that equips him to "stand against the wiles of the devil," {Ephesians 6:10} to "resist the devil," {James 4:7;1 Peter 5:9} and to "overcome the devil." {Revelation 12:10} Thirdly, it delivers them from the pressing bondage of guilt- "that they may receive forgiveness of sins" {Romans 1:18} c. It brings a peace to the heart and the conscience that nothing else can provide. This peace of conscience, this justification by faith, {Romans 5:1} such as the Publican received inLuke 18:1-43, may very well be the dominant utility of the gospel. Fourthly, it delivers them from a life of lonely selfishness into the warmth of Christian fellowship with other believers- "that they may receive an inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith" {Romans 1:18} {d} Fifthly, it delivers them from spiritual immaturity to a life of growth and progressive conformity to the image of Christ -"sanctified by faith that is in me" {Romans 1:18} c. The gospel is spiritual food for the believer’s growth. {1 Peter 2:2} God, through the gospel, can transform attitudes, mend broken relationships, encourage the downcast, comfort the bereaved, strengthen the weak, and change the lives of those who hear. The gospel is heaven’s powerful resource for living the Christian life.
2. The Gospel Informs the Mind and Instructs the Understanding:
It’s purpose is to illumine: {Psalms 119:130} "The entrance of thy words give light; it giveth understanding to the simple."2 Timothy 1:10says that the gospel brings "life and immortality to light." Note it does not give "life and immortality" but it brings it to "light," that is, to manifestation. It is God’s means of imparting knowledge, guidance, and counsel to His people. {Jeremiah 3:15;Psalms 25:5;Psalms 119:24} 3. The Gospel is the Instrument of Conversion.
1 Corinthians 4:15says, "For though ye have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet have ye not many fathers: for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel." Paul was the father of the Corinthians in the same sense that Timothy and Titus were described as "his sons in the faith." {1 Timothy 1:2;Titus 1:4} He was, in other words, instrumental in bringing them to a knowledge of the truth and in their early spiritual development. They came to gospel understanding under his ministry. The ministry is like parenting {1 Thessalonians 2:7;1 Thessalonians 2:11} in this sense. God uses his word to change a person’s mind. {Psalms 119:25} That is conversion.
4. The Gospel is God ‘s Means of Giving Hope, Joy, and Peace to the Soul.
What good does it do to believe the gospel?Romans 15:13says, "Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Ghost." Joy, peace, and hope come through believing.
5. The Gospel is God ‘s Means of Nourishing the Inner Man.
Three times Jesus commanded Peter to "feed my sheep." The chief business of the pastor to the flock is to preach the word unto them. "Feed the flock of God which is among you," urged Peter. {1 Peter 5:1} Paul said, "Feed the church of God which He bath purchased with His own blood." {Acts 20:28} The gospel is food for the hungry soul, the bread of life, the means by which believers "taste the good word of God." {Hebrews 6:3} 6. The Gospel Liberates the Believer from the Oppressive Yoke of Legalism.
Jesus said, "Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free..."{John 8:32} The proclamation of God’s grace to sinners in Jesus Christ has an emancipating effect on the heart. Jesus is the ultimate Liberator. {Galatians 5:1} 7. The Gospel Heralds and Proclaims Christ’s Finished Work.
In2 Corinthians 5:18-20, Paul distinguishes between the "work of reconciliation" and the "word or ministry of reconciliation." The work of reconciliation has already been accomplished. It is finished. {John 19:30} It is an objective fact. The gospel is the report of that fact, the publication of redemption accomplished and applied: "How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that publisheth peace, that publisheth salvation, that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth." {Isaiah 52:7} The Gospel is the victory cry of a successful Savior.
8. The Gospel Urges Men to Turn from Idolatry and to Worship the True God. The Thessalonians responded to Paul’s preaching by "turning to God from idols to serve the living and the true God." {1 Thessalonians 1:9} The call to repentance is inherent in the gospel message. The gospel not only proclaims Christ’s finished work, but calls upon the hearer to respond to that message by believing it, obeying it, and committing himself to a life of godliness, out of gratitude for God’s grace. The gospel summons men to a life of good works, not in order to gain salvation, but in order to glorify the God of our salvation. The relationship that exists between God’s immediate and effectual work in regeneration, and man’s subsequent responsibility to believe and obey the gospel, is said by the poet better than I could say it:
I will not work my soul to save, For this my Lord has done; But I will work like any slave, For love of God’s dear Son.
That, dear reader, is the message of sovereign grace!